Installation for the continuous casting of ingots



J. 'F. A. JACQUET 2,494,619

INSTALLATION FOR THE CONTINUOUS CASTING 0F INGOTS Jan. 17, 1950 Fil edJan. 26, 1946 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Jan. 17, 1950 J. F A. JACQUET 2,494,619INSTALLATION FOR THE CONTINUOUS CASTING OF INGOTS Filed Jan. 26, 1 946 3Sheets-Sheet .2

ATTORNEYS Jan. 17, 1950 J. F/A. JACQUET INSTALLATION FOR THE CONTINUOUSCASTING 0F INGO-TS s Sheets-Sheet 5' Filed Jan, 26, 1946 BY W MATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 17, 1950 INSTALLATION FOR THE CONTINUOUS CASTINGOF INGOTS Jean Francois Auguste Jacquet, Brussels, Belgium ApplicationJanuary 26, 1946, Serial No. 643,630 In Belgium February 11, 1943Section 1, Public Law 690, August 8, 1948 Patent expires February11,1963

1 Claim. ('01. 22-57.2)

My present invention relates to an installation for the continuouscasting of ingots comprising a stationary casting pocket and one orseveral horizontal ingot casting moulds, each containing an ingot coreand each provided with a cooling arrangement.

Various methods and arrangements have already been proposed forrealising this operation but none has been capable of industrialapplication with a view to effecting ingot manufacture from all metals,including steel.

The present invention may be conveniently adapted for the manufacture ofingots from all ferrous or non ferrous metals although a particularapplication of the casting of ingots from steel is hereinafterdescribed.

It was found that difficulties encountered up to the present areattributable to a large extent to the fact that it is indispensable fora given casting that the vessel destined to receive the metal in moltenstate must be carefully freed from the congealed metal which resultsfrom the preceding casting and which adheres to the lateral walls andbase of the vessel, as well as to the refractory conduit for the outflowof the metal, and that this removal of the congealed metal should takeplace without the necessity of dismantling the refractory lining of thevessel as this should serve for a maximum number of operations.

One of the objects of the present invention is to suppress this defectof known apparatus and at the same time. to enable ingot castings to beeffected in an entirely automatic manner.

A further object of the present invention is to ensure that the moltenmetal is not subjected to air exposure during the process and to makepossible the simultaneous casting of several ingots from a singlecasting pot and so reduce the casting speed. The increased efliciency ofthe cooling fluid thus obtained will enable the metal to solidii'y to asuificient degree to avoid ruptures and wrinkles occurring in the skinof the ingot during the course of discharge from the casting machine.

Among the advantages thus obtained by such an installation should benoted the material improvement in the quality of the metal at the sametime as a considerable lowering in the price of the manufacturedproducts, this improvement of the quality being notably concerned withthe homogeneous condition of the metal, the fineness, regularity, andpurity of the grain, the absence of cavities, wrinkles and other defectspresent in ingots cast by the known methods.

According to the invention. this installation is characterisedprincipally in that each horizontal ingot mould is caused to communicatewith an opening in the bottom of the pocket through a refractoryhorizontal conduit, which has the same section as the ingot mould, ishoused in a box open towards the top and secured in an easily detachablemanner to the bottom of the pocket, in such a way that this housing canbe readily separated from the bottom referred to, even in the case inwhich after the casting operation, the refractory conduit and the bricklining the casting opening in the bottom of the pocket, should be filledwith metal which may have become solidified and might be connected tothat which may eventually be found congealed in the pocket.

In the practical application of the invention, the removable boxreferred to contains a brick which is arranged co-axially with a bricklining the opening in the bottom of the box and which is provided with abore terminating in the horizontal refractory conduit and destined toreceive upon the displacement towards the exterior of the ingot mouldcore, a refractory pin fitted in the cavity of the brick in the openingof the base of the pocket.

Moreover, the liquid metal contained in the casting pocket may, withadvantage, be subjected to the action of pressure exercised convenientlywith the aid of a piston or like organ. The interior of thepocketcontaining the metal is lined with refractory material and the piston atthe same time as it exerts a pressure upon the liquid metal, is causedto compress a plastic material of a refractory kind disposed in a spacecomprised between a prolongation of the piston and the internal surfaceof the portion not lined of the pocket in such a way that this plasticmaterial forms a joint between the piston and the internal refractorylining in the lower portion of the pocket containing the metal.

0n the annexed drawings: 1

Fig. 1 is a vertical cross section and Figure 2 is a plan view showing aplant, according to the invention, in which a pressure is not exerted onthe metal contained in the pocket.

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 represent respectively a vertical section, a profileview and a plan view of theremovable box-like runner. They illustrate byway of example, how it may be constructed in order to enable its rapiddetachment from the base of the pocket; Y

The installation illustrated in Figure 1 comprises fundamentally ametallic casting pot l which has the shape of the frustum of a cone,which is provided with a refractory lining 2 and which is held in asupport 3.

The bottom of the pocket I in the example shown is provided with sixopenings 0, (Fig. 2) permitting the fiow of metal towards six ingotmoulds 4 arranged horizontally. Those ingot moulds are, withadvantage,*made of a metal of high thermic conductivity, for example, ofan alloy of Al-Si or Al-Cu of the Elpax or Duralumin class. In order toincrease the resistance to bursting, they could, with advantage, bestrengthened or bound, for example; by means of steel wire (not shown)wound round them under convenient tension. Each ingot mould 4 issurrounded by a sleeve 5 with which are connected two pipes 6 and I, oneof which supplies to the sleeve 5 a cooling fiuid which is evacuated bythe other after heating.

Each opening 0 in the bottom of the pocket I is provided with arefractory brick 9 pierced longitudinally with a cylindrical bore,through which the steel can flow out.

Moreover, secured to the bottom of the pocket I for example, by bolts orclamps, are removable box-like runners I0 the number of whichcorresponds to that of the openings 0 and in each of which is fitted ata right angle to the direction of the brick Q a hollow cylindrical brickI i the bore in which has the same section as that of the ingot to becast. The runner It contains a further hollow brick I2 having the samebore as that in the brick 9 and terminating at its upper extremity inthe cavity of the horizontal brick i I. The axes of the bricks 9 and I2coincide as shown in the drawing.

Directly connected to the metal runner I6 is the ingot mould #3 havingthe same internal cavity as the hollow brick It.

Means are provided, moreover, as shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5 enabling therunner It to be separated from the pocket I even in the case in whichthe bricks Q and I I should be filled with solidified steel which may beintegral with residue in the casting pot, that is to say, metal whichmay have become solidified in contact with the refractory lining of thepocket forming a crust thereon.

Thanks to this removability, the runner iii may be readily separatedfrom the base of the pocket i even in the case in which after theoperation, the brick II and the brick 9 should be filled with steel thatmay have solidified and have become bound at the base of the pocket buteventually formed in the pocket i.

In the event of a solidification of steel in the interior of the bricks9 and II the runner i0 would be removed, the brick II broken in order toreach the steel and thereupon the vertical body of this solidified steelcut away by a blow-pipe or any other means. The metal solidified in thebottom of the pocket I can then be removed from the pocket together withthe steel which has solidified in the brick 9 and bound to the saidmetal solidified in the bottom of the pocket; this removal can takeplace easily in view of the decreasing section from bottom to top of thecasting pot.

At the exit of the ingot mould are disposed two cylinders I3 and I4, thedistance between which can be varied by any appropriate means and whichmay rotate in opposite directions.

Use is made in a known manner of an ingot mould core I5 which before theintroduction of the steel into the pocket I will be fitted in positionto occupy entirely the interior cavity of the ingot mould II and that ofthe brick II. The free extremity of this core I5 is engaged between thetwo cylinders I3 and Il.

At that end of the ingot core which extends into the cavity of the brickII provision may be made of one or several organs such as hooks,destined to remain plunged in the metal, whereby after solidificationthe ingot can be carried along by the ingot core I5, with which it hasbecome bound by the means referred to.

Before filling the pocket I, the bore in the brick 9 is fitted with a.cylindrical pin I5 of the same composition as the brick and resting byits base on the ingot core I5. This pin is is intended to form a plugand to prevent the metal contained in the pocket I from passing into thecasting conduit before it is necessary. Otherwise, the metal which wouldfill this conduit and remain there during the filling of the pocket,would become solidified.

After the pocket I has been charged, the ingot core I5 is displaced inthe direction of the arrow F lengthwise to enable the pin it to dropinto the cavity in the brick I2 filling it completely.

In this way, the casting opening in the pocket is automatically freedfrom its plug and the casting of the ingot proper may then commence, thesteel arriving at this moment in the cavity of the brick Ii.

The gate of the entry for the cooling fluid into the sleeve 5 is thenopened and the cylinders I3 and it put into operative use.

Obviously, according to the progress of the casting, cutting of thecontinuous ingot and provision for auxiliary cooling may be made by anydesired means after the exit of the ingot from the mould.

In the eventualityof a solidification of steel in the bore of bricks 9and i I, the runner II) can also be removed easily, the'brick II isbroken and the steel having eventually been solidified cut away ashereinabove explained. A difference consists however in that the castingpot i and its refractory lining 2 can then be separated from the base 3and lining 2 This enables the removal from the base of the steelsolidified therein as well as that contained in the brick 9.

As will be readily conceived, the flow of the steel outside the pocket Iright up to the ingot mould is effected under the protection from airand the generation of gas produced during the casting in the usualprocesses of ingot manufacture will be rendered impossible.

The gases developed during the flow of the metal in the ingot moulds areextremely noxious and in this respect, the installation, the object ofthe invention, ofiers, therefore, a great advantage compared with othershitherto used.

Moreover, the whole installation is completely above ground which againconstitutes an important advantage and thanks to the possibility ofrealising without inconvenience or difficulty the run of the metal intoseveral horizontally disposed ingot moulds it is possible to causeseveral ingots to be cast concurrently from the same casting pocket. Thespeed of the fiow may, due to this fact, be reduced to usefulproportions and the action of the cooling medium be thus made moreeflicient.

There is no reason why the pocket should not be provided with thelargest number possible of cylinders disposed at one side of the pocketcould asegcro take off a series of parallel ingots in one direction andanother pair of rollers disposed laterally to the casting pot anddiametrically opposed to the first pair would take ofi another series ofingots as for example in Figure 2.

During the execution of the ingoting operations, it may be of advantageto provide for a pressure action to be exerted on the molten metalcontained in the pocket 9.

In accordance with the exchange of temperature between the steelarriving in the ingot mould d and the cooling fluid in the housing 5, acrust of steel is formed, so to say, instantly by the contact with thecooled walls of' the ingot mould.

The nature, the temperature, the pressure oi this fiuid will all bejudiciously determined as also the thickness and the length of the ingotmould, as well as the section of its housing.

The described installat on will be found to satisfy all the conditionsindispensable to casting on an industrial scale.

According to the study made by the applicant, these essential conditionsare the following:

1. The ingot mould should be horizontal (in order to avoid casting pitsof prohibitive depths).

2, The horizontal ingot mould should be connected to the pocket itselfwithout disruption of continuity (in order that the weight of metal ofthe pocket may co-operate with the run and compensate for the tractionaleffort exercised by the delivery cylinders).

3. After each casting operation, the crust of the metal solidified bycontact with the lining of the pocket, should be capable of beingremoved.

The above explanations showthat this condition is more particularlyenvisaged in the actual invention and that the means which arefundamental thereto enable the result depending on this condition, to beattained.

4. The outflow conduit should be provided in the base oi the pocket, andnot in its lateral wall.

As a matter of fact, an opening in the lateral wall would preventextraction of metal congealed upon contact with the refractory lining ofthe pocket and of the outflow conduit.

Moreover, an opening provided in the lateral wall would not enable thepocket to be completely emptied, which however, is indispensable.

Even in the case in which the opening were as near as possible to thebase of the pocket, it would happen that at the end of the flow, themetal could not run out under pressure and the reduced speed of itsoutflow would provoke its solidification to a much greater thickness,not only in the base of the pocket but also in the conduit connecting itto the ingot mould, and this metal could not be extracted from thepocket.

It should be added that should the metal attain a level below the levelof the ingot mould, the ingot could not be formed in a normal manner.

5. The pocket should contain the total or metal for the ingot to be castbefore the outflow of the metal may commence.

This necessity results from the fact that quite frequently (and one maysay always in the case of steel), final additions are made not in thefurnace but in the pocket. The outflow of the metal from the pocket intothe mould cannot, therefore, commence until these final additions to thetotality of the cast have been made.

Moreover, it is indispensable to wait a few moments beiore casting whenthe pocket is full in order to enable impurities contained in the metalto rise to the surface of the bath.

6. The metal should not penetrate into the outflow conduit during thefilling of the pocket.

If this should happen, this metal in the outflow conduit would becomesolidified therein. The opening should, therefore, be obstructed fromthe inside of the pocket during the time necessary for filling it withthe metal.

7. The speed of the casting should likewise be reduced if possible, inorder to permit the cooling fluid to exercise its cooling action withthe maximum emciency.

8. The pocket must be emptied of its contents while the condition of themetal remains amenable to its running.

This condition is one which appears to be obvious without explaining itsnecessity.

it is easy to appreciate that this installation, the object or thisinvention, will permit or the fulfillment of the whole of the aboveconditions. With the conditions referred to above under (8) in mind, theapplicant has provided for the multiplication of the ingot moulds withthe object of enabling the whole of the contents of the pocket to beemptied during the time desirable for this operation while 1 .2. w. itpossible:

(a) to slow down the linear speed of the flow in a manner to obtain asumcient drop of the temperature of the metal during its passage intothe ingot mould;

(b) to avoid the employment of ingot moulds of abnormal lengths whichwould render the arrangement incapable of industrial application.

The invention is'oi. considerable interest both from the point of viewof the material improvement of the quality of the metal and that of thelowering of the cost of the products thus produced.

Tests have proved the perfect homogeneity of the ingot metal, of itsfineness, its regularity and purity of grain, the rational absence ofcavities, wrinkles and other flaws traceable in ingots cast by thehabitual methods.

This notable improvement of the quality of the metal is attained on theone hand due to the rapidity with which its solidification takes placewhich results in the avoidance of segregations provoking a heterogeneouscharacter of the metal, and on the other hand, thanks to the fact thatcavities or other flaws caused by contraction of metal in the course ofits solidification, are nonexistent due to the uninterrupted run of themolten metal through the zone of its solidification.

The absence of such flaws which occur in ingots cast by known methodsand result in losses of up to or even exceeding 25% represents an eco=nomic advantage of considerable importance. Moreover, the inventionresults in an important simplification of the manufacture which enablesingot production to be effected practically in an automatic manner.

What I claim is:

A casting apparatus comprising a refractory vessel having a base, saidbase being provided with an outlet bore therethrough having a verticalaxis, a removable plug in said outlet bore, a horizontally disposedrunner communicating with said outlet bore, said runner having a chamberprotruding downwardly therebelow in alignment with said outlet bore,said chamber being of a size to accommodate said plug at the initiationof flow of molten metal from the vessel to the runner, including aningot core in said runner disposed for horizontal withdrawal therefromand supporting said plug in said outlet bore prior to initiation offlow.

JEAN FRANCOIS AUGUSTE JACQUET.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATEN'IS Number Number Number Name Date Marshall Aug. 28,1928 Cofiey Aug. 23, 1932 Bell June 21, 1938 Phillips Aug. 16, 1938Eldred Nov. 1, 1938 Williams Jan. 23, 1940 DeBats Sept. 30, 19-11Brennan Mar. 20, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Belgium Oct. 31, 1942Belgium Mar. 31, 1943 France Sept, 10, 1880 France Apr. 9, 1945Luxemburs: June 1, 1945

